Telecommunications – Radiotelephone system – Programming control
Reexamination Certificate
2001-01-03
2004-08-03
Gary, Erika (Department: 2681)
Telecommunications
Radiotelephone system
Programming control
C455S432100, C455S456100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06771955
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a function limiting method for a telephone communication terminal and a telephone communication method applied to telephone communication of a telephone communication terminal such as, for example, a portable telephone communication terminal with another telephone communication terminal in a state or a region in which different regulations such as laws are applied, as well as a telephone communication terminal and a repeating center equipment for use with the methods.
Variable portable telephone communication terminals are available including a portable telephone communication terminal which has a conversation recording function by which conversation during communication can be recorded simply. According to the conversation recording function, conversation with the other party during communication is recorded into a memory of the portable telephone communication terminal. Consequently, contents of the recorded conversation can be heard repetitively before they are erased.
Utilization of the conversation recording function eliminates the necessity for taking hand-written notes of contents of the conversation or of significant information presented in the conversation. Further, later playback of the recorded contents of the conversation allows the user to repetitively hear the recorded contents of the conversation by any number of times and take notes of significant matters of the conversation.
Also a communication system is available which is applied over a large number of countries such as, for example, a GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication) system. Utilization of such a communication system as just mentioned allows a telephone call to be made easily and conveniently from a mobile communication terminal such as a car phone communication terminal or a portable telephone communication terminal.
Also a communication terminal such as a mobile communication terminal is available which uses such a communication system applicable over a wide area as just described and incorporates the conversation recording function described above. In some countries, however, such legal restrictions are provided that recording of conversation during communication is inhibited or, when it is intended to record conversion during communication, the other party must be notified that the conversation is being recorded in order to protect the privacy and for the like object.
However, it is difficult for a user typically of a portable telephone communication terminal having the conversation recording function to know mandatory controls of all pertaining countries. Therefore, use of the conversion recording function may possibly cause the user to conduct an illegal act without knowing it. In order to prevent this, a portable telephone communication terminal is being investigated which detects a country code sent from a base station and indicative of a region such as a country in which the base station is positioned and discriminates, based on the country code, presence or absence typically of limitations to the conversation recording function in the region or country indicated by the country code, and observes the limitations where the limitations are applied in the region or country.
However, the portable telephone communication terminal just described takes only the country in which the portable telephone communication terminal is actually used into consideration, but does not care limitations to recording of conversation during communication in the country in which the other party of the communication is.
Accordingly, when one party A is in a country in which recording of conversation during communication is inhibited while the other party B is in another country in which there is no limitation to recording of conversation during communication, there is the possibility that, while the party A talks considering that recording of the conversation is inhibited, the other party B records the conversation arbitrarily without the consideration of the party A.
In this manner, while the conversation recording function is convenient in that contents of conversation can be recorded easily thereby, it may possibly cause a user to violate regulations such as laws of a country in which the other party of the communication is positioned without knowing it or to record the conversation against the will of the other party of the communication. Therefore, also restrictions to use of a communication terminal such as a portable telephone communication terminal prescribed in a state or a region of the other party of communication must be taken into consideration.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a function limiting method for a telephone communication terminal and a telephone communication method wherein use of a function provided for a telephone communication terminal can be limited taking regulations such as laws applied in a state or a region in which the other party of communication is positioned, a will of the other party of communication and so forth into consideration and a telephone communication terminal and a repeating center equipment for use with the methods.
In order to attain the object described above, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a function limiting method for a telephone communication terminal for limiting an information signal processing function of a telephone communication terminal for processing at least a received information signal, comprising the steps of a detection step of detecting a region identification code to be used for identification of a state or a region in which a call originating terminal is used, the region identification code being included in information received upon origination of a call from the call originating terminal, and a control step of performing limitation control to the information signal processing function based on the region identification code detected in the detection step.
In the a function limiting method for a telephone communication terminal, a region identification code to be used for identification of a state or a region in which a call originating terminal is used is detected by a call terminating terminal. Then, limitation control to the information signal processing function is performed based on the detected region identification code by the call terminating terminal. In particular, it is possible for the call terminating terminal to discriminate whether or not restrictions to the information signal processing function of the call originating terminal based on regulations such as laws applied to a state or a region in which the call originating terminal is used are present and discriminate, where such restrictions are present, contents of the restrictions. Consequently, the information signal processing function of the call terminating terminal is controlled and limited based on the detected region identification code.
Therefore, the call terminating terminal can control the information signal processing function of itself so that the regulations such as laws applied to the state or the region in which the call originating terminal is used may not be violated.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a function limiting method for a telephone communication terminal for limiting an information signal processing function of a telephone communication terminal for processing at least a received information signal, comprising the steps of a detection step of detecting control information to be used to limit the information signal control information included in information received upon origination of a call, and a control step of performing limitation control to the information signal processing function based on the control information detected in the detection step.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a telephone communication method, comprising the steps of transmitting control information to be used to control a call terminating terminal to limit
Imura Shigeru
Sanpei Masaru
Farkhondar Farima
Gary Erika
Maioli Jay H.
Sony Corporation
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